Akyem Oda, Oct. 26, GNA - Mr Fredua Agyeman, a Technical Director of the Ministry of Lands, Forestry and Mines, has said the total forest cover that stood at 8.2 million hectares at the turn of last century (1900s) decreased to 1.6 million hectares by 2000.

He said currently over 80 percent of the total land area, which was originally covered with humid tropical forests, had been deforested. Mr Agyeman said this when he presented a paper at a three-day Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) workshop at Akyem Oda for representatives of the Building and Woodworkers International (BWI) ant the Timber and Woodworkers Union (TWU).

He said deforestation rate was estimated to be 65,000 hectares per annum.

Mr Agyeman said to help address the situation the ministry had embarked on Forestry Policy Reforms to ensure conservation and sustainable management of forestry resources.

He said the reforms also aimed to improve utilisation of the country's forest and wildlife resources for optimum benefits to the country and resource owners in particular.

"The policies include transparent and efficient allocation of timber resources and control of over cutting of timber", he said. It also includes appropriate pricing of timber and other forestry based products in order to increase revenue and address the problem of under pricing of forestry resources.

Mr Agyeman said the Annual Allowable Cut (AAC) would also be reviewed as a transitional measure in order to salvage valuable timber being destroyed in Off-Reserve Timber Utilisation Contract Areas (Agricultural Farmlands)

He said the policies would ensure that chainsaw operators were mobilised into alternative productive ventures and control of illegal logging and illegal chainsaw lumbering operations. It would also ensure equitable distribution of benefits to communities, resource owners and farmers as a way of facilitating effective decision-making and participation of all relevant stakeholders in the sustainable management and development of the resource.